Freedom-hungry Lebanese yesterday staged their biggest display of “people power,” with a massive demonstration in Beirut to demand an immediate end to Syrian occupation.

A huge crowd, estimated at more than 100,000, gathered at Martyr’s Square in downtown Beirut, where the recently assassinated ex-Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri is buried, to continue their brave three-week-old crusade to rid their country of Syrian dominance.

The protest – which was larger than expected – came in response to the announcement that Syria, appearing to blink in the face of mounting pressure, agreed to pull its troops back to the Bekaa Valley in eastern Lebanon – a step that falls short of the complete withdrawal the crowd and the Bush administration has demanded.

“Yes, for withdrawal to the Bekaa, but, yes, first to the full withdrawal behind the Lebanese-Syrian border,” opposition lawmaker Walid Eido told the crowd.

One group raised a banner reading read, “Today we have one target: To liberate our land.”

The improbable rebellion – sparked by Hariri’s assassination, which many believe was instigated by Syria – has gained momentum in recent days and has led to the collapse of the Damascus-backed Syrian government.

U.S. intelligence sources told The Post that CIA and other European intelligence services are quietly giving money and other logistical support to organizers of the anti-Syrian protests to ramp up the pressure on Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to completely quit Lebanon.

Sources said the secret program is similar to previous CIA support of pro-democracy movements in Georgia and the Ukraine, which also led to impressively large and peaceful demonstrations.

Yesterday, the White House cheered from the sidelines at the spectacle unfolding in Beirut.

“We stand with the Lebanese people, and the Lebanese people, I think, are speaking very clearly,” said White House spokesman Scott McClellan.

“They want a future that is sovereign, independent and free from outside influence and intimidation.”